Smoke-consuming device for fire-boxes.



W. D. BOYCE. smoxn cousnmme DEVICE FOR FIRE BOXES.

0o 1 9 1 2 t P Du S d 6 b n m a P APPLICATION FILED MAY15, 1912. 1,071,689.

L T B E H S s T E E H s 2 INVENTOR. W D- Boyce & E S M. N T U. "W

\ ATTORNEY.

"YLUMBIA PLANOGRAPM CO WAS HINGTON, n. c.

llmjhltqllil3-1-1-1! y 1m W M Y B ATTORNEY.

2 SHEETS-833E112 III f Patented Sept. 2,1913.

III!

W. D. BOYCE. SMOKE cousumme DEVIGB FOR FIRE BOXES.

APPLICATION IILBD MAY 16, 1912.

l l l l I l WITNESSES:

COLUMBIA PLANOOSIAPH CDnV/ASHINGTDN. D. II.

WI'LLIAM I). BOYCE, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

MOKE CONSUMING DEVICE FOR FIRE-BOXES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 2, 1913.

Application filed May 15', 1912. Serial no. 397,443.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WViLLIAM D. Boron, citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Smoke Consuming Devices for Fire-Boxes, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention has relation to improvements in smoke-consuming devices for fireboXes; and it consists in the novel features of construction more fully set forth in the specification and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the rear end of a locomotive boiler with my invention applied, parts being in section; Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the zigzag line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the boiler; Fig. l is an inside face elevation (with parts broken away) of the air plate or casting at the front ends of the sides of the fire-box; Fig. is a top plan thereof; Fig. 6 is a cross section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4:; Fig. 7 is a face elevation (with parts broken away) of the air-plates at the rear of the fire-box;

Fig. 8 is a cross-section on the line 88 of Fig. 7; and Fig. 9 is a horizontal sectional detail showing the air-plate at the side of the rear wall of the fire-box.

The present is an improvement on the fire-box forming the subjectmatter of U. S. Letters Patent 938,036, issued to me under date of October 26, 1909; and while contem plating the same objects and possessing the same advantages as the patented construc tion, the present improvement is specifically directed to those forms of fire-boxes wherein the products of combustion within the firebox are first deflected rearwardly before passing forward to and into the lines leading from the tire-box into the stack. An example of such a firebox is that of a locomotive boiler where a water-tube connection is made diagonally across the fire-box between the rear of the boiler and the waterleg at the front of the fire-box. Over the lower portion of these water or circulating tubes are placed fire-brick, the whole forming a diagonal baffle wall which deflects the combustion products causing them to be deflected rearwardly before they pass forward through the boiler fiues. It is to secure as complete combustion as possible of these deflected products, that the present improvement was designed, although it must be understood that its application is not to be restricted to locomotive boilers.

The invention in detail may be described as follows:

Referring to the drawings, B represents a portion of a conventional locomotive boiler, F the tire box, D the charging door opening, and G the grate, the fire-box being battled as shown, that is to say by a wall w composed of slabs of fire-clay or equivalent material deposited over the lower front portion of the diagonally disposed circulating water-tubes t, baffling of this character and construction being well understood in locomotive boiler constructions, and requiring no detailed description in the present connection. Disposed above the grate-support ing ledges a along the front portions of the side walls of the fire-box and spaced from said sidewalls by studs m, are the ribbed air-plates 1 provided with T-shaped parallel ribs 7" formingv open ended channels 0 for the admission of atmospheric air from the space (ash pit or ash box) below the grate, the ledge 0 having a section removed therefrom just beneath the plate, the grate bar at that point being supported by a bracket 6 (Fig. 2). The channels 0 are closed at the front or on the side facing the fire-box below the battle to, but are open above the battle, thereby forming slits 8 through which the air may flow into the combustion chamber above the battle (Figs. 1 and 2), the course of the air currents being across the normal direction of flow of the combustion products on their way toward the fines f. The inner walls of the plates or castings lbelow the battle 0.0 are heated by the incandescent fuel in the tirebox and by the deflected gases, the heat being thus communicated to the inflowing air, so that when the latter is discharged above the batlie w it comes in at a high temperature which is favorable to a. complete conibustion of the pro-ducts before they pass into the lines f. To lighten the plates or castings 1, sections thereof are removed behind the ribs as shown to best advantage in Figs. 1 and 1, the upper edge of the opening thus formed serving to accommodate the hooks h from which the castings are suspended. At

the front ends of the sides of the fire box are disposed steam risers 2 terminating above the plates 1 in spray-heads 3 slotted peripherally in such manner as to project jets of steam at an oblique angle to the air currents aforesaid, and in a direction opposed to the general direction of fiow of the combustion products. In the particulars so far described the invention does not differ in any material respect from that forming the subject matter of my patent aforesaid, except in the matter of closing the fronts of the channels 0 below the batlie w.

lVhere however, a fire-box is battled in the manner above pointed out, the combustion products as they leave the fuel charge on the grate are deflected rearwardly (see arrows Fig. 1) before they resume their normal forward flow in their passage over the upper edge of the battle toward the stack or final outlet out of the boiler furnace. In this rearward deflection, the combustion products have an initial flow (obviously) in direct opposition to their normal (forward) fiow, and it is the purpose of my present improvement to burn as completely as possible the unconsumed portions of the products so deflected by the battle to. This beneficial result may be accomplished by injecting steam at the rear corners of the fire-box (in a manner similar to that injected at the front corners under my patent aforesaid) in conjunction with air currents introduced either at the rear ends of the side walls of the fire-box, or at the sides of the rear wall of the fire-box as will now more fully be explained :Disposed along and spaced from, the side walls of the fire-box (by studs m) at the rear ends of said walls over openings leading from the ash-box or ash-pit (not shown) are ribbed plates 1 with channels 0 between the ribs 1" and having slits s in every respect similar to the corresponding plates 1 at the front of the fire-box. In the rear corners of the fire-box are steam risers 2 terminating in spray-heads 3 (above the plates 1) which are peripherally slotted in such manner as to project jets of steam not only at an oblique angle to the air-currents traversing the slits s between the ribs 1, but in a direction opposed to the general direction of initial flow of the dellected products. This initial flow is of course in substantial opposition to the normal. forward flow of the combustion products; and when the air currents are admitted through the plates 1 set at the rear ends of the side walls of the fire-box as just described, these currents naturally cut across the path of travel of the deflected combustion products. Under those circumstances therefore, the air currents flow across the path of (rearward) travel of the deflected combustion products, the steam jets being projected at an oblique angle to the air currents to intersect the same and in a direction opposed to the general direction of initial flow of the deflected combustion products.

In lieu of placing the plates 1 at the rear of the side walls of the fire-box, I may mount them at the sides of the rear wall as shown in the modification in Fig. 9. This change may be made without disturbing the pipes 2. and hence without disturbing the angular relation between the steam-jets from the heads 3 and the air currents. The only relation which is disturbed is that between the air currents and the deflected combastion products. In other words, by placing the plates 1 at the sides of the rear wall of the fire-box (Fig. 9) the air will then flow into the fire-box in direct opposition to the deflected combustion products, instead of flowing across the same as in the case where the plates 1 are at the rear ends of the side walls of the fire-box. In practice, the posi tion of the rear plates along the side walls is preferred for narrow lire-boxes; whereas the positioning of the plates at the sides of the rear wall will-answer better for wide fireboxes. In other cases a trial or two will solve which is the preferred position.

The manner of supplying steam to the pipes 2 and 2 is immaterial, but in the pres ent embodiment of my invention, I provide a valve-controlled steam-pipe ft provided with a blower-valve V by which live steam may be admitted to the risers 2, 2, and their spray-heads 3, 3, one branch 4 of the pipe 4 leading along one side of the boiler and then in front of the fire-box to a separator 5, the branches 6, 6, from which lead to separators 7 7, whence the tubes 8, 8, lead to the risers 2, 2, in the front of the fire-box. A second branch 4: leads across the rear of the boiler then downward to a T 9, thence to Ts 10, 10, thence by suitable elbow connections 11, 11, to the risers 2, 2, at the rear of the fire box. The pipe 12 from the blower-valve V leads back to the exhaust nozzle at the front of the engine to assist the draft, but this feature is not concerned with the present invention. The particular valve o of the blower valve V which controls the steam through the pipe 1 is turned on whenever it is desired to conduct steam to the risers 2, 2, as quite obvious from the drawings, the steam escaping through the slits in the spray heads 3, 3, in directions indicated by dotted lines 00, m, w, m, in Fig. 2, and as particularly described above. The arrows inthis figure representthe direction of travel of the air currents through the slits s, 8. Such details as may be shown but not alluded to fall within the purview of the skilled mechanic and require no description.

In the present illustration, a double grate is employed, the individual bars being supported from the ledges a and the center wall a as shown. The top plan (Fig. 5) slightly differs from the cross section (Fig. 6) being that the channels 0 are partially closed at the top, being narrowed down to the width of the slits 8. To protect the plates 1, a wrought iron bar 6 is preferably suspended from the rear edges thereof as shown, the attachment being made in any mechanical manner, but preferably by hooks a.

By normal flow or normal direction of flow of the combustion products as herein used is meant the general direction of flow of said products toward the fines f and toward the outlet from the boiler furnace. By the front end of the fire-box is meant the end adjacent the flues f, and by rear end meant the end which carries the charging door D. These designations however, apply to locomotive boilers only, the terms front and rear being used in the reverse sense when applied to stationary boilers; and in the claims this distinction must be borne in mind, it being understood that I do not desire the present improvement to be limited to locomotive boilers, although such a boiler was deemed most pertinent for purposes of illustration. The opposed flow of the steam jets to the flow of the combustion products is not an opposition of one-hundred and eighty degrees, but substantially one of one-hundred and thirty-five degrees, since it is desirable that the opposed steam currents shall be oblique to the air currents be the latter flowing across the direction of flow of the deflected combustion products (Fig. 2), or in direct opposition thereto (Fig. 9).

Having described my invention, what I claim is 1. In combination with a fire-box provided with a battle for deflecting the combustion products over the fuel charge, in a direction opposed to the direction of normal flow of said products, means permitting said deflected products to resume their normal direction of flow after deflection, means at the rear of the fire-box for admitting currents of air in substantially vertical sheets to the deflected combustion products, and means for projecting jets of steam independent of the air currents from points contiguous to the rear corners of the fire box at an oblique angle, to intersect the air currents, and in a direction opposed to the gen eral direction of initial flow of the deflected products.

2. In combination with a firebox provided with a baffle for deflecting the combusti-on products over the fuel charge in a direction opposed to the direction of normal flow of said products, means permitting said deflected products to resume their normal direction of flow after deflection, means at the rear of the sides of the fire-box for admitting currents of air across the path of travel of the combustion products, and

means for projecting jets of steam inclependentof the air currents from the rear ends of the sides of the fire-box at an oblique angle to intersect the air currents and in a direction opposed to the general direction of initial flow of the deflected products.

3. In a locomotive fire-box provided with a front diagonally disposed baffle engaging the sides and front wall of the fire-box, and terminating a suitable distance below the crown of the fire-box, means at the rear of the sides of the fire-box for admitting currents of air across the path of travel of the combustion products, and means for projecting jets of steam independent of the air currents from the rear ends of the sides of the fire-box at an oblique angle to the air currents and in a direction opposed to the general direction of initial flow of the products deflected by said battle.

4:. In combination with a firebox baffled to deflect the combustion products in a direction opposed to the normal direction of flow of said products, means for conducting currents of air in substantially vertical sheets to said deflected products, and means for projecting independent jets of steam at an oblique angle to intersect the air currents, and in a direction opposed to the general direction of initial flow of said deflected products.

In combination with a fire-box battled to deflect the combustion products in a direction opposed to the normal direction of flow of said products, means for conducting currents of air in substantially vertical sheets to said deflected products and in paths transverse to the initial direction of flow of said deflected products, and means for projecting independent jets of steam at an oblique angle, to intersect the air currents, and in a direction opposed to the general direction of initial fiow of said deflected products.

6. In combination with a firebox, a baflle positioned across the same and engaging the front wall thereof at a point above the bottom of said wall, and dividing the fire box into two intercommunicating chambers, suitable members disposed at the front of the sides of the firebox and extending above the bailie, and provided with open ended channels having their front faces closed below the baflle but open above the baffle for discharging heated air into the chamber above the battle in a direction across the normal direction of flow of the combustion products, and means at the front ends of the side walls of the fire-box for projecting jets of steam into the chamber above the baffle in paths oblique to the air currents and in a direction opposed to the general direction of flow of the combustion products.

7. In combination with a fire-box, a bafiie positioned across the same and dividing the fire-box into two intercommunicating cham- 

